{"id":8356,"date":"2025-12-29T12:56:42","date_gmt":"2025-12-29T18:56:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/29\/new-owner-with-checkered-political-past-takes-over-newspaper-serving-missouris-capital\/"},"modified":"2025-12-29T12:56:42","modified_gmt":"2025-12-29T18:56:42","slug":"new-owner-with-checkered-political-past-takes-over-newspaper-serving-missouris-capital","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/29\/new-owner-with-checkered-political-past-takes-over-newspaper-serving-missouris-capital\/","title":{"rendered":"New owner with checkered political past takes over newspaper serving Missouri\u2019s capital"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Scott Faughn, left, testifies in 2018 to the Missouri House Special Investigative Committee on Oversight about paying $120,000 in cash in several installments to a St. Louis attorney who was representing the ex-husband of the woman who accused then-Gov. Eric Greitens of coercive and violent sexual misconduct (Tim Bommel\/Missouri House Communications).<\/p>\n

A trio of newspapers that cover Missouri\u2019s capital city and surrounding communities will now be run by a familiar and polarizing figure in state politics whose career has been marked by scandal.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Scott Faughn announced on Monday that his company was taking over the Jefferson City News-Tribune, Fulton Sun and California Democrat from Arkansas-based WEHCO Media Inc., which has owned the papers since 2008.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Faughn, whose company currently publishes an online compendium of press releases and opinion pieces called the Missouri Times, said in a press release that all three newspapers will continue to operate under their current names and locations. Employees, he said, will remain in their current positions.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are honored to carry forward the legacy of the News Tribune, Fulton Sun and California Democrat,\u201d Faughn said. \u201cOur goal is to maintain the high level of service readers expect while investing in the long-term success of these publications.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Walter Hussman Jr., publisher and chairman of WEHCO Media, said at a press conference Monday that the papers have not been profitable since his company purchased them. He called community journalism a \u201cpublic trust,\u201d adding that he is hopeful that under local ownership the papers will thrive.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Faughn has been involved in politics since a young age. He became mayor of Poplar Bluff at the age of 22 in 2002.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He then led the Poplar Bluff Chamber of Commerce and was a catalyst behind a successful effort to widen a local highway. But he was convicted in 2007 of three felony counts for forging checks from an account related to that effort.<\/span><\/p>\n

He started <\/span>the Missouri Times in 2012<\/span><\/a> along with former Missouri House Speaker Rod Jetton, who is no longer involved with the company.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

His first brush with controversy in state politics came in 2015, when it was revealed he was <\/span>hosting parties for lawmakers in Jefferson City<\/span><\/a> that were paid for by lobbyists. The arrangement nearly got the Missouri Times booted from the Capitol Press Association, as it was widely seen as a strategy to help lawmakers avoiding disclosure of lobbyist gifts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In early 2018, Faughn paid $120,000 in cash in several installments to a St. Louis attorney who was representing the ex-husband of the woman who accused then-Gov. Eric Greitens of sexual assault.<\/span><\/p>\n

Shortly after the first payment, St. Louis television station KMOV broadcast a <\/span>recording provided by the ex-husband of his former wife<\/span><\/a> detailing how Greitens allegedly tied her up, stripped off her clothes, photographed her naked without her consent and threatened to release the image if she told anyone about their affair.<\/span><\/p>\n

The recording was made without the woman\u2019s knowledge and publicized without her consent.<\/span><\/p>\n

Faughn kept the payments secret for months while continuing to cover Greitens both in his newspaper and on his TV show. When the payments were eventually revealed during a court proceeding, <\/span>Faughn fled the state to avoid a subpoena<\/span><\/a> from Greitens\u2019 lawyers.<\/span><\/p>\n

When he was eventually called to testify before a Missouri House investigative committee, Faughn said under oath that the money was for the purchase of recordings of Greitens\u2019 alleged victim talking about physical abuse for a book he was working on \u2014 even though other journalists got the recordings for free.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lawmakers publicly questioned his explanation, especially after the attorney whom he paid testified that Faughn told him the money came from an unnamed wealthy Republican who did not like Greitens.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

One Republican called Faughn\u2019s testimony \u201c<\/span>mind boggling<\/span><\/a>.\u201d Lawyers representing Greitens at the time alleged Faugh\u2019s connection was through the low-income housing tax credit industry. Greitens tried to eliminate the tax credit, while Faughn\u2019s television show was sponsored<\/a> by a bank heavily involved in the industry.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Missouri Times was expelled from the press association over the Greitens revelations. Since then, <\/span>questions about the editorial independence of Faughn\u2019s news operations<\/span><\/a> have continued to swirl.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ironically, the Jefferson City News Tribune was one of the organizations that most loudly denounced Faughn after his involvement in the Greitens scandals were revealed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen a \u2018journalist\u2019 is more interested in being involved in a big news event than simply reporting on it,\u201d the paper argued, \u201che no longer should be considered a journalist.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Faughn\u2019s history did not come up at Monday\u2019s press conference.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Hussman urged readers and the business community to rally around Faughn, who he said shares his \u201ccommitment to customers, employees and the community.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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